Down the River
by Elillierose
Summary: During a hunt, Noctis and Prompto are thrown into danger when the prince's headaches decide to pop up at an unfortunate time. Now, stranded away from the others Noctis has to care for Prompto's serious injury until they can get out of their situation.
1. The Fall

**Been a few weeks since I uploaded anything, and for that I apologize, but I hope this suffices. It's not the best, but next chapter should be better.**

"Man, how much further do we have to go? We've been walking forever." Prompto whined from the back of the group, hunching over slightly.

"Quit being dramatic will you?" Gladio replied. They hadn't been walking that long, only for a couple of hours or so. Though to be fair, the heat always does make it feel longer than it's been.

Ignis was taking up the front, leading the way, "It shouldn't be too much further, but it would be faster if you two would pick up your feet." He countered, referring to both Prompto and Noctis.

"Can we at least take a few minutes?" Prompto straightened himself back out, stretching his back as he did so. "Or at least, ya know, catch our breath. Not all of us are made of the same stuff as Gladio after all."

Ignis sighed in exasperation, "We will be at the river soon. Once we arrive we shall stop for a few minutes, then continue to follow it upstream. We can't take too long though, or else our target would have moved on before we reach it."

"There you go again Iggy, being too easy on them." Gladio responded, half out of humor and half out of annoyance. "I say we make a straight shot there and give them the muscle and endurance they need. Wouldn't hurt them."

"Easy for you to say, big guy." Prompto ran up to be next to him, "You were trained for this sort of stuff."

Gladio smirked, "Why don't you make yourself useful and go motivate his highness?" He waved his hand, signalling for the younger man to do just that. Prompto slowed his pace back down until he was once again next to Noctis and matched his speed. He glanced over, noticing the vacant and distant look he had in his eyes. This seemed to have been happening quite frequently lately.

"Everything all right?" He asked, switching his attention back on where he was going. "You seem a little, how to I say it, off."

Noctis took a moment before replying, mostly likely comprehending what was just asked, or that Prompto was once again beside him. "Hm? Oh, yeah. Just these headaches won't go away."

"Are they getting any worse?" He asked concerned. It was obvious they were bothering him, but he wasn't sure how bad they really were.

Noctis slowly shook his head. "About the same actually. They're not all terrible, but every now and then one will hit and it's a little less than bearable." He saw the worried look on his friend's face and added, "I'm fine though, no need to make a big deal about it."

Prompto didn't buy into it so easily, but also didn't want to push it further, "Ok, if you say so. But, if it does get worse, then you won't hesitate to say something, right? We aren't mind readers." He gave him a reassuring smile, letting him know that they were there for him before changing the subject. "Well, we better hurry it up or Gladdy will give us one of his 'responsibility' lectures." He clapped Noctis on the shoulder, urging him to relax a little, and ran back ahead. He smiled to himself as he heard the footsteps behind him quicken as well.

Within the next hour, the sound of rushing water could be heard. It was quite loud for still being out of sight, indicating the sheer size of it. There was a little bit of foliage around them now as they were getting closer to water, which also meant a little bit a shade to spare them of the intense rays from the sun. They were all able to relax a bit thanks to this nice change in environment. Only downside was they no longer had a clear view of their surroundings.

They continued forward until the sweet sound of the water seemed to be just a few yards away. As they got closer, Ignis drastically slowed their pace, being extra cautious in this uncertain area. He didn't really trust anything in this place. One misstep could be the death of any of them. "Watch your step when we get closer, the river has eroded the area and flows several feet below where it once did." He glanced back at the others to make sure they heard the warning, and all nodded in understanding.

They slowly approached the chasm, and gazed down into the rushing ad violent waters below. It had to be at least twenty feet below them. They carefully stepped back away from it, not wanting to risk slipping, or unstable ground deciding it wanted to give out from right underneath them. "Does this mean we're almost there?" Prompto asked, staring up the river intently, "I don't see anything."

"I would imagine not." Ignis responded, "It's not as if it's going to be meeting us half way." He took a few steps away and took a quick look around, "Go ahead and take a moment, we will be moving on shortly."

Prompto stretched his arms upward, "Finally." He said with relief and went to lean against a tree. Gladio stayed where he was, not feeling the least bit tired, like usual. He was standing next to Ignis, ready to go as soon as the others were ready. Noctis was talking this time to try and relax, to will the last remnants of his last headache away. He let out a sigh of satisfaction as it slowly eased away. "Any better?" Prompto asked from a few feet away."

Noctis jumped slightly at his voice, and turned to face him, "Oh, yeah. For now it is." He brushed it off and changed the subject, "I'm just ready to hurry up and get this over with. I want to get back by night so we can sleep in an actual bed tonight.

"I second that." The blonde agreed, "Sick of sleeping on rocks myself." He pushed himself away from the tree, "I guess that means we should probably get going then." He pulled out his camera quickly, almost like it was an after thought. "I think I want to get a few shots first. If you can look past how terrifying it is, it's actually pretty beautiful down there." He eased to the edge and proceeded to take a few pictures.

"Alright, just be careful, will you?" Noctis asked as he watched his friend stand precariously close to the edge.

Prompto waved his hand, "Yeah yeah, I got this." He crouched down and snapped a few shots before standing back up. "That should do it." Looking over his shoulder, he flashed Noctis a quick smile, "Alright, we can go no-" He cried out as he felt his foot slip from underneath him. Closing his eyes tightly, he anticipated what was to come. He slowly opened them back up when the falling sensation never hit him and he became vaguely aware of a grip on his wrist. He followed the arm and saw that Gladio had grabbed hold of him.

The larger man pulled him back to where he was standing steadily on solid ground. Prompto let out a shaky breath. "Th-thanks."

Gladio removed his hand, "What did Ignis say about watching your step?" His own heart was racing at the thought of what could have happened. "Try not to get yourself killed."

"Yeah, right." Prompto responded "I'll be more careful." He glanced once more behind him and took multiple steps away from the edge. He pocketed his camera and walked over to Ignis before nodding at him, letting him know that he was good to go.

Ignis glanced him over and turned to carry on, choosing not to comment on his slip up. He seemed embarrassed enough about it as it was. "We'll probably reach our destination within the next hour."

And true to his word, they hadn't been walking too much longer when their target was in sight. They stayed back, watching as its dark feathers ruffled in the slight breeze. This behemoth of a bird had to be at least eight feet tall, and from the looks of it, it wasn't standing at its full height. It hadn't noticed them yet as it was facing the other direction, paying the four of them no attention. They crouched low to the ground as they slowly began to creep towards it, being as quiet as possible as they did so. The immediately froze when the creature seemed to perk up, picking up on their presence, but it eased back down when it heard no other signs.

They waited a moment before pressing forward, giving it time to forget about its suspicions. And, being the animal it was, it didn't take long before its full attention was elsewhere, giving the group time to all duck into some foliage and get completely out of sight. Ignis waved his hand for the others to lean in close. "Alright, we need to take this cautiously." He whispered as his eyes settle on Noctis, "That means no charging in, and no reckless actions."

"What are you looking at me for?" Noctis asked, sounding slightly offended.

Ignis breathed out, "You aren't exactly known for you subtleties or strategic maneuvers." He removed his gaze and looked between the other two. "Prompto, you and Noct should try to attack it from behind." He then switched over to Gladio, "And the two of us will work as a distraction in the mean time." They nodded in understanding. "You two stay here until it is fully focused on us. Do not engage until then, and if you can, take out its wings first."

On Ignis' signal, both him and Gladio crept their way around, slowly making their way around the massive body and positioning themselves a few yards away. In unison they both left the safety of their cover and proceeded to taunt the beast with little attacks here and there, refraining from doing anything that would cause it to react too brashly.

Seeing as it was now completely distracted by the older two, Prompto summoned his gun and quickly made his way behind its left wing. With a clear line of sight he began firing at the point where the wing connected with the body, successfully rendering the appendage useless. "Yes!" He cheered to himself, and turned to see how Noctis was fairing on his end. He looked over to the other side, noticing that the prince was nowhere to be seen. "Noct?" He called out as he glanced around. As he searched he was vaguely away of the bird turning its attention towards the new threat.

His eyes fell on his friend still in the same spot he was. He was still crouched down in the bushes with his head cradled in one hand. Seeing that the creature was now facing their direction, Prompto wasted no time in rushing over to Noctis' side. "Hey, buddy, bad time to be doing this." He said as he gently shook his shoulder. He saw that what he was doing wasn't working, so he tried a different method. Wrapping one arm around the other, he forced him to his feet, practically dragging him up. "Come on, you gotta at least move from here." he tried to encourage as the beast was getting closer to the two of them.

"Prompto! Noctis!" Gladio called out, seeing the situation for the first time. The blonde looked to him then back at the bird, now seeing what he was looking at. It had its good wing spread outward as it was now standing at its full size. In one swift and strong movement it flapped its one wing.

"Crap." He grit out, seeing what was happening next. Without much time to react he turned the both of them around, trying to use his own body as a means of protecting Noctis what little amount he could. The gust of wind hit him all at once. Calm one second, and harsh the next. He tried to brace himself against the onslaught, but knew it was futile, the winds this thing could create were way to strong to resist.

Before he knew it they were both falling and he lost his hold on Noctis; it seemed to happen so quickly. He could hear the other two calling their names, but most was lost in the rushing air flying past him. He turned his head to look below them and saw the water approaching quickly. He turned back towards his friend who finally looked to be aware of what was happening. Prompto reached out a hand to him, but that prospect was swiftly tossed aside as and explosion of pain resonated from his left side.

Before he could inspect what was wrong though he found himself submerged as water flooded his airways. At this point he had no idea where Noctis was, but he was really hoping he reacted in time to at least warp to safety. He frantically tried to resurface, but the current wasn't having any of that as it kept pulling him right back under. With his strength quickly draining he felt himself being pulled further under as blackness was now creeping along the edges of his vision. Seeing nothing else to do he gave in to it and let unconsciousness claim him.

Noctis winced as he finally started to come to, immediately coughing up what little water remained in his lungs. Breathing was painful and it felt as though he hadn't taken in any air in ages. He ached all over and he quickly became aware of how soaked he was. His clothes were absolutely drenched. He vaguely remembers falling and having the air knocked out of him with the impact. But there was something else he couldn't quite put his finger on that he was forgetting. Then a sharp cry set itself as his reminder. He shot upright, cringing at the lightheaded feeling the motion brought.

He glanced around the area, eyes falling on something lying a few feet away. That's when he heard the whine again. He forced himself onto his hands and knees and painstakingly made his way over until he could make out Prompto's face, which was scrunched up in discomfort. "Prompto?" He whispered, not trust his voice to be steady, feeling the soreness in it. The blonde cracked open and eye and stared blearily at the other.

"H-hey." He grunted out, curling up a little as he did so. Noctis quickly looked him over, searching for the source of his discomfort. His eyes landed on his side, which was covered by Prompt's hands. Without hesitating he grabbed his wrists and pulled them away, ignoring his protests as he did so.

"Dammit." He breathed out, feeling slightly panicked.

Prompto made no move, but tried to take a look for himself, "What is it?" He asked, still ignorant as to what was causing his pain. "What's wrong?" Noctis didn't answer right away as he just stared at the shard wood protruding from his friend's side. It had to be at least an inch in diameter. It wasn't sticking out very far, which meant it was either short, or it was in there pretty deep.

"Ok, ok ok. Umm. Stay calm." He released Prompto's wrists and held his hands up for emphasis.

Prompto slowly nodded, but if anything he looked even more concerned. "Ho-how bad is it?" He asked, his breathing speeding up as another wave of pain was rolling over.

Noctis didn't know how to respond. "It's, well, it's not good." He leaned down more to get a better look at it. "I'm going to need to get a better look at it though, alright?" He waited for Prompto to give his confirmation before gently prodding the area a little, stopping as soon as the blonde gave a sharp gasp at the slightest touch. "Sorry, I'm so sorry." Noctis quickly apologized, instantly feeling guilt for causing more pain.

The other shook his head, "It's fine, go on." He squeezed out, trying to relax more.

Noctis nodded and went back to what he was doing, feeling around the area, finding that it wasn't short like he was hoping. Getting a bad feeling now he slowly turned Prompto further onto his side and looked away as he saw the other end of it. It had gone all the way through.

He slowly took his hands away. "You're not going to like this. Hell, I'm not going to like this." Prompto looked into his eyes and saw the sympathy filling them. Noctis looked away before continuing. "I...I'm going to have remove it."

Prompto paled at the sound of it ad thought for a moment and quickly made up his mind. "Do it." He said, closing his eyes.

Noctis sighed and placed his hand around the stick, adding a little pressure on his side to get a better hold. He carefully began to pull it out, hand automatically slipping from the blood. Prompto couldn't stop the scream the escaped as the object was jostled. He was taking in quick and short breaths, "Just yank it out quickly." he forced out in a shaky voice.

Noctis looked around for anything to help him get a better grip. Spotting the bandanna, he untied it and wrapped that the stick, holding onto it tightly. He looked into the other's face one last time and held his breath. In one swift and strong motion, he jerked the piece of wood from the blondes body. He winced again at the sound he made, it tore at him to hear it.

He threw the stick aside ad placed his hands over the now heavily bleeding wound. "You still with me, buddy?" He asked. He got no response and looked up to his face. His eyes were open but they seemed to be looking at something distant and he was taking in gasps of air. "Hey, don't pass out on me now." He took one hand and patted it against the side of his face, not caring that he was smearing blood on him. "Come on, stay with me."

Prompto came through a little as ever exhale became a small whimper now. About a minute later and his breathing was evening out. "I'm good, I'm fine." He tried to reassure Noctis, as well as himself.

Noctis felt relieved, but fearful at the same time as the crimson liquid was still seeping out between his fingers. "We have to stop the bleeding." He looked around for anything that could be useful, but seeing nothing. Then a sudden idea hit him, and he hated that he even considered it. "We need a fire." He said plainly. He grabbed Prompto's hands and placed them over his wound. "Keep your hands there, and don't move them." He ordered, pulling his own away.

Prompto did as he was told, although his hands didn't work much in stunting the flow as the were mainly limply resting there. He could hear Noctis shuffling around dragging things, moving things, but didn't care to much to turn his head and see exactly what he was doing. Didn't have the energy to really care. He thought he saw a flash of light and felt warmth next to him, but still didn't feel like satisfying his curiosity. The next moment Noctis was back in his line of sight and he had his sword out.

"Wha are you doing with tha?" Prompto slurred out, eyeing the blade intently.

Noctis looked from the sword to the fire, then to Prompto. Without speaking he held the blade in the fire, and kept it there until it started to get a slight red glow to it. The other was able to put two and two together, "No, please." He almost begged. "Another way...has to be."

Noctis didn't respond as he carried on what he was doing. "Prompto, move your hands." He commanded instead of asking. Prompto hesitantly did as he was told, knowing there was no arguing with him. Noctis lifted his shirt above the puncture wound, and gave it a second's though before quickly pulling the blade out of the fire and pressing it against injury.


	2. Signs

**I'm hoping this one is a little better than the last chapter. The last one was probably a little awkward since I had worked on it on and off so my flow was a bit wonky on it.**

It pulled at Noctis' heart the way Prompto cried out and tried desperately to pull away despite his efforts to remain still. He placed one arm over his chest, trying his best to steady him at least a little. The sound of the blood sizzling against the scorching blade made him feel nauseous, but he did what he could to ignore it. "I'm sorry, it'll be over soon, just hang in there." He tried to soothe, knowing it was falling on deaf ears though. His struggles finally began to die down and Noctis realized he must have been passing out from the pain. It was better that way though.

He pulled the blade away after and checked to see if the bleeding had stopped; satisfied with the results, he held it back in the fire and let it heat up once again as he used his other hand to turn Prompto over a bit more to reach the exit wound on his back. This one looked a little more ragged than the other. He removed the blade from the fire and repeated the same process, holding it there until the wound was cauterized enough to stop the bleeding.

The moment he was done he dismissed his weapon, feeling disgusted just holding it now, and pulled Prompto's shirt back down before turning him on his back again. Now that the wounds were sealed, the main thing he was concerned with was infection, especially with the burns he now had. He really wished he had something better to treat him with, but he basically had nothing on him.

He looked him over once more to make sure he didn't miss anything, but other than the puncture wound he seemed to be unharmed. His eyes drifted back to wound, and felt uneasy at the red and raw skin that peeked through. The blood staining the shirt surrounding it didn't help any either. He removed his own jacket and tossed it over his friend so he wouldn't have to see it anymore.

He then scooted the both of them closer to the fire, hoping to at least dry them off a little. He wasn't sure what would be best to do next. Should he wait there in case the others were looking for them? Or start heading back? Neither choice sounded like one he was very fond of, but it had to be one of them. Either way he would have to wait until Prompto was awake before he made any decision. It all came down to whether he was up to moving or not.

He sat in silence for what felt like ages, listening to the sound of the flowing water and the rustling of the leaves in the wind around him. "How did we get into this mess?" He asked himself as he lowered his head into his hands and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. 'Why couldn't it have been Iggy or Gladdy that got stranded with him instead. Either of them would know what ti do.' He thought to himself, lifting his head back up. He wasn't fit to deal with this kind of stuff. He didn't have the experience or training to know what should or should not be done.

He started to straighten himself back up when he felt a light touch on his arm. The slight sensation was enough to startle as he whirled around to see what it was. Prompto had his hand weakly gripping his arm, and made to sit up. That idea automatically dissipated as his face scrunched up and his his hands flew to his side. He tried to curl up, but Noctis placed two firm hands on his shoulders. "Don't do that." He said quietly, "Move too much and you could make it worse."

Prompto carefully nodded his he tried his best to relax a little, he managed to a bit, but not very much. "Right." He hissed out, closing his eyes tightly. Every breath only caused more discomfort so his breathing had become shallow in an attempt to avoid it. He removed his left hand from his side, but kept the other wrapped tightly around himself, scared of changing the pressure on it at this point.

Noctis noticed this and felt guilt flood through him once again. He couldn't help but feel as though all of this was his fault. "I'm sorry, if it wasn't for me we wouldn't be in this mess." He looked down to the ground, too ashamed of himself to look at the other.

He felt a hand touch his, "It's not your fault." Prompto said, looking right into his face. "It was out of your control and no one is blaming you." He tried pushing himself up again, not paying any attention to Noctis' fussing, "So stop blaming yourself." He got himself halfway up before pausing as sweat rolled down his face.

Noctis clicked his tongue, "Hey, I said to stay still." He placed a hand back on his shoulder and tried to push down, but that hand was quickly swatted away.

"Not until you agree that it's not your fault." He replied stubbornly, barely holding himself up on one arm.

"Come on, we'll talk about it later, for now just calm down." Noctis said, a little louder this time. Prompto made no move, so Noctis once again tried to force him back down, but still being gentle in the process. And again, he tried to resist, unsuccessfully, but he was still trying. "Dammit, Prompto! Cut it out already!" He shoved a little harder than he meant out in his outburst and the other fell back to the ground with a gasp. He couldn't stop from curling up this time.

Prompto turned over onto his right side, desperate to alleviate what pain he could. He whimpered softly as his hands gripped at his side. There was an intense stabbing pain, almost as bad as the initial stabbing itself had been.

Noctis was right next to him, hands hovering above him. "I didn't mean to do that." He pried the blondes hands away to make sure he didn't cause more damage, relieved to see that he hadn't, but he still caused unnecessary discomfort. "Look, I acted out of frustration, I shouldn't have been so rough." Prompto didn't respond yet and only lied there, fingers digging into the dirt. He gave him a moment for the pain to subside a little more.

Prompto took a steadying breath, a small one, but still a deeper one than he's been taking. "It's alright." He ground out between his teeth. "Accident." He kept his sentences short. After a few more seconds he eased some of the tension in his body, knowing that tensing up was only making it worse for him.

"No it's not alright." Noctis responded, getting to his feet and began pacing back and forth. "We're stuck down here and I have no idea where the others are, and you're in no condition to be moving around. Everything is definitely not alright." He stopped and crouched back down.

"Could be worse." Prompto offered, voice having a bit more strength to it now. "We could be dead after all." He added with slight humor, attempting to do what he did best and lighten the mood a little. The effort fell short as it failed to provide Noctis with any amusement. Instead he only glared at him for that comment.

"You're not wrong, but still." He took a deep breath, "I hope you're in the mood for camping out here. I was debating whether we should wait here or not, but given the circumstances, I think staying put may be the best choice after all." He picked up a stick and poked at the fire a bit; it had already began to die out and was dwindling down quickly. "Thanks, by the way." He added almost inaudibly, recalling the moments before they both fell.

Prompto turned over onto his back again, "For what?" He asked, having no idea what the other was thanking him for. "I haven't exactly done much of anything."

"You know, for trying to protect me up there." He didn't know exactly what happened, but he remembered Prompto being there with him before everything went down. "Although, if you didn't do what you did, you would be safe right now instead of stuck down here."

Prompto let out a small laugh, wincing as he did so, "Maybe." He turned his head to look directly at Noctis, "But I wouldn't want to go back and do anything differently. I couldn't just watch my best friend get chucked off a cliff and do nothing about it." He closed his eyes and rested his head back down, feeling a tad exhausted now. "Besides, I'm sure you would do the same." His voice was growing quieter as he struggled to stay awake now.

This didn't go unnoticed by Noctis, "Hey, why don't you sleep for a bit, it's not like we're going anywhere anytime soon." He suggested, hoping the other would take that offer.

"I'm good." Prompto lied, obviously falling asleep. He could barely keep his eyes open as it was. "Just woke up."

"That may be true, but you lost some blood. It's probably the best for you right now." He gazed over to see the other's steady breathing and relaxed posture. That didn't take long. He smiled to himself, "Sleep well, I'll wake you if anything happens." He said more to himself than anything.

It felt as though a couple of hours had passed of relative silence of nothing happening. Nothing had changed, not so much as a peep from anywhere in the area, even Prompto had remained still and quiet. Noctis did find that a bit odd, even tired as he was it was weird that he should be that quiet. He stepped over to him and knelt down, looking him over. With a first glance, he looked fine for the most part, just a little pale, but that was to be expected.

At any rate, it was starting to get late and the fire had long since gone out, and although he hated to do it, he had to wake him up. The idea of staying next to a river at night in such an open area didn't exactly sound inviting. He placed a hand on the side of Prompto's cheek and patted softly, not missing the coolness of his skin. "Hey, we gotta move." He patted a few more times with no reaction. "Come on, man." He said patting a bit harder.

This time it earned him a soft groan as he tried to turn his head away. As he began to come to a little more pain was starting to grace his face again and a hand was back at his side in a second. "What the hell." He mumbled to himself, still slightly out of it. He cracked his eyes open, which were a little glazed from sleep. He blinked a few times until his vision cleared a bit more and he could make things out. "Noct? What's going on?" He asked, voice full of confusion.

"It's getting dark, we shouldn't stay where we are." Noctis said, getting right to the point. "I'll give you a moment, so let me know when you feel good enough to move a little. Just far enough to be hidden well enough for the night." He didn't want him to travel any further than he had to.

Prompto thought for a moment, "Help me sit up." He asked as he was already pushing himself up.

Noctis was caught off guard at that, "Are you sure you're ok to right now? We still have time, so you can take all the time you need. There's no rush yet."

Prompto nodded quickly, "Yeah, I'm sure. Wanna get it over with." With or without Noctis' help he was determined to get up. The process wasn't the most pleasant, but he wasn't about to drag this out either. The sooner he got where he needed to be, the sooner he could go back to sleep.

"Alright, if you really want to." Noctis complied. He still felt bad about what he had done earlier and honestly didn't want a repeat of that. Wrapping one arm around Prompto, the two of them stood up together, Noctis supporting most of the weight. The blonde couldn't stop the whimper that escaped his lips as his knees tried to buckle, luckily Noctis was there to stop that from happening.

"Thanks." Prompto whispered, fingers digging into Noctis' shoulder. He pulled himself back up, supporting most of himself now, not wanting to depend quite so much on Noctis to do it for him. "How far?"

Noctis took a look around, not seeing anything in his immediate line of sight that would work good enough. There was foliage here and there that would be think enough to hide them, but it still didn't feel as though it would be safe enough if anything were to show up. "Not too far, maybe a couple of minutes or so." He answered, it wasn't true, but he couldn't exactly tell him he had no idea what he was doing.

Prompto gave one quick nod, "Ok, I'm ready."

The going was slow and tedious, but at least they were covering ground and making progress. Small progress, but progress nonetheless. He few times they stumbled, but they were able to recover each time quickly. Only thing was, after each mishap, their pace seemed to slow considerably. And within only a few minutes or so they were barely moving at all. At this point Noctis glanced over.

Something was clearly wrong, he looked absolutely horrible. He was still terribly pale and his skin felt even colder than it had before. "Prompto?" He asked, starting to feel worried now. "How ya feeling buddy?"

Prompto tried to straighten himself up a bit more, "Fine." He answered stubbornly. Clearly answering as if on autopilot without a second though. As he stumbled for about the fifth time, he cried out and his free hand gripped fruitlessly at his side.

Noctis had enough and forced the bot of them to stop where they were. "Something is obviously wrong." Without asking or requesting, he lowered the other to sit against a nearby tree. He pulled Prompto's shirt up to look for any sign of infection, or anything that would indicate what was wrong. There was nothing. It looked about the same as it did. He gently pressed around it before noticing there was some slight swelling and tension, but that was about it. He worked his way to the back, each bit of added pressure causing the other to flinch. The further around he got, the more Prompto protested against it. By the time he got to the back, that's when he noticed something off. Some weird discoloration could be seen; it was barely visible, but it was there.

Prompto saw the look on his friends face, and felt fear himself from the look. "What is it?" He asked hesitantly, "What's wrong?"

Nocis thought about whether it was a good idea to say anything or not. Then thought against it, deciding it wouldn't do any good to cause him any more worry. "It's nothing. I thought I saw something, but I guess I didn't." He pulled the shirt back down, covering up the wound blocking if from sight, and hopefully from mind. "We should keep going. Are you alright to keep going?"

"Y-yeah, I think so." He reflexively replied, "Let's go."


	3. Harm from Within

**I had originally planned on this being 3 chapters, but it turns out it will be at least one more, since I'm bad at planning things out. _ I kinda sorta just wing things, but hopefully you guys like it. o3o**

 **And as always, feel free to point out any mistakes, since I know he make them quite often.**

Noctis was keeping an eye out for anything that could remotely be used for proper shelter. They had been walking too long as it was. He had planned to find something within a few minutes, but they were starting to push half an hour by now. And to make things worse, Prompto was clearly pressing on past his limit, not even vocalizing his displeasure. He looked purely exhausted, but he still continued to force himself to walk on. Something he really shouldn't be doing, but he couldn't carry him like Gladio would be able to.

He slowed down to a stop and took another look around, the same process he's been doing for some time now. Walk a bit in order to give the other a short break, and use that time in order to get a proper look around. As he gazed around, he felt the weight against him shift slightly and lean more heavily against him. Noctis supported him without issues, surprised he was able to do so well as long as he had. Though, he was still deeply disturbed and concerned about this.

"Hang on, not too much further." He said encouragingly, although he felt like he's said it far too much by this point. It didn't really have any meaning anymore. He felt Prompto nod lightly next to him. He hadn't been saying much of anything for the last few minutes, only a few groans here and there. "How are you holding up?" He asked, more out of desperation to hear him actually speak.

"Hmm." He hummed out; if Noctis hadn't been listening for it, he probably would have missed it.

Noctis sighed to himself, "Come on, I need more of an answer than that. 'Hmm' doesn't tell me anything." He pulled Promtpo's arm further around him, trying to rouse him a bit and get him to focus a bit more.

He let out a small gasp in response. But it did seem to get his attention at least, "Stop." He strained out, then took in a slow and shuddering breath. "Noct?" He asked, voice laced in pain as he didn't try to hide it anymore.

The sound of his name being called in such away, pitiful ad pleading, was enough to make his chest tighten in unease. "What is it Prom?" He tried his best to sound confident and strong, but he could tell he didn't succeed as well as he wanted to.

The other took a while before responding; he was looking down at the ground in thought, most likely trying to compose himself a bit more before talking again. "S-something's wrong." Noctis felt everything freeze in that moment. "It hurts... it hurts too much." He sounded quieter as he tried to keep his voice steady, not wanting to show the fear he felt.

He had been hoping that his eyes really were playing tricks on him earlier when he checked the wound, but if Prompto was aware of it, then it had to have been real. With that being said he made the decision that where ever they were would have to work somehow. No way was he going to move forward now. As carefully as he could he lowered Prompto down to lie on his back, which resulted in another miserable gasp. Noctis lifted his shirt again, to get a second look, and if it wasn't clear before it was now.

Everything went cols at the sight, and his hands instinctively balled into fists as his throat tightened up. The discoloration was darker and spread out a little more than it was not too long ago. It was almost like a bruise. A clear sign of blood seeping from under the skin. "Noct?" That one call of his name was enough to pull him out of his stupor.

"Yeah, I'm right here? What is it?" He asked, switching his gaze to Prompto's face instead.

"Wh-what's wrong?" He asked, trying to look for himself. "Tell me." He closed his eyes as another surge ran through him. "Please?"

Noctis rubbed a hand down his face, he really didn't want to say anything, but he didn't know if he should keep something like this from him. If he knew, then maybe he would know not to move too much. Either that, or it would make him more panicked. "Ok." He finally decided. "I'll tell you, but you need to stay calm, ok?"

"Yeah." He mouthed out the word.

Noctis swallowed hard ad took a deep breath, looking back down to the wound, "Um." Even though he had agreed to tell him, it was still difficult for him to say. "I'm not entirely sure, but I think... I think there might be some internal bleeding." He gave the blonde a few seconds to process that, and took his silence as a sign to continue. "But, I don't think it's too bad, as long as you remain calm."

"A-are you sure?" He asked softly. Noctis could see the despair beginning to set in his eyes. He was suddenly finding it difficult to breathe and he felt sick. "That-that can't be right." He said more to himself, not wanting to believe it. His whole body tensed and another jolt ran through him. He pressed his lips into a thin line, holding any sound from coming out, but he couldn't stop the grimace that adorned his features.

"You need to relax." Noctis quickly blurted out, seeing his friends reaction to the news. "I don't want you making it worse." Dammit, where was Ignis when you needed him. What the hell was he supposed to do? He knew nothing about this sort of thing. Ignis was the one that carried the potions, he should have known it would have been better for all of them to have a few on them. But how could he have known?

"Yeah, yeah. ok." Prompto replied quickly, trying his best to unwind and calm himself down. He knew Noctis was right, but he couldn't completely smother that feeling of dread that overtook his logic. He took a few semi-deep breaths through his nose and tried to find something else to focus on. His eyes landed on one of the leaves above him, and he watched as it swayed hypnotically in the light breeze. "Ok." He repeated once he felt some of the pain subside.

"Ok." Noctis echoed. "Good."

"What now?" Prompto asked, still staring right above him, never taking his eyes off the leaf.

Noctis followed his gaze, "I honestly have no idea." He answered honestly. Feeling as though making something up wasn't going to help any. "We need the others here. Plain and simple. We have nothing on us, no potions, no supplies, nothing." He lowered himself next to Prompto, and drew his knees up before resting his forehead against them. "I really have no idea what I'm doing." He admitted to his friend, as well as to himself.

He didn't move or look when he felt Prompto's hand find its way to his and give it a light squeeze, "It's alright to not know what you're doing." He consoled lowly, "Just look at me, you think I know what I'm doing half the time?" He smiled to himself, "None of us are perfect, but we try. And that's really the best any of us can do. Try." Noctis felt his hand tighten slightly around his own. "As long as...as you do that, then it's ok. It's all ok."

Noctis didn't know how to respond to that. It didn't make him feel any better about any of this. He didn't think anything would except for Prompto getting out of this ordeal. "Thanks." He said anyway. "I'll try my best."

"I know you will." His hand dropped back down to his side. A shiver passed through his body, and he didn't realize until then how cold his was. He was freezing. Something brushed against his face, and soon something was covering him. He glanced down to see the black material of Noctis' jacket covering him. "Thanks." He said, appreciating the offered warmth.

"No problem." He looked back towards the sky to see that it was almost dark. "I'll be right back." He said, getting to his feet. "We need to start another fire before it's dark. Do you need anything before I go and gather wood?"

"Nah." Prompto shook his head, eyes starting to slide shut.

"Prom, you gotta stay awake, at least until I get back. Can you do that for me?" He almost pleaded. Any other time he would have preferred him resting while he could, but he couldn't bare the thought of not being around in case something happened. At least awake he could call for him if he was needed.

Prompto urged his eyes back open. "Hmm? Yeah." He could already feel his body trying to pull him under again, but he fought against it. He could do that much at least. He had to.

Noctis was left alone with the crackling of the fire and the sound of Prompto breathing next to him. It was now well into the night, and they had been lucky so far that nothing had shown up. Although, in a way it was unlucky seeing as that also meant there was no sign of their companions either. But he hoped with this fire they would easily be able to find them if they were nearby.

Prompto shifted next to him, and let out a quiet grunt of distress. Noctis was thinking about what he saw earlier. Not the discoloration, or the burns, but there was something else that didn't seem right. It was the swelling. Not that swelling would have been odd, but the way it felt seemed odd. He went and crouched back down next to his side, wanting to take another look at it while he was asleep. He pulled back the material and flinched slightly at the sight. No matter how many times he saw it, it wouldn't get easier to look at. He lightly brushed his fingers around it, barely touching at first, then gradually adding pressure. Prompto only shifted a little, but other than that he remained how he was.

Noctis slowly felt around until his fingers finally ran over what he had noticed before. After feeling it for a bit he realized that it wasn't actually swelling he felt, it was far too solid. Realization finally hit him and he cursed himself for not being more thorough. There was something else stuck in him. He had completely missed it. All of his fears renewed themselves with his discovery. "Shit." He hissed to himself, "Shit shit shit." He pulled his hand away as if just touching him would cause more damage.

'How could I have not noticed earlier.' Noctis thought to himself. To think, he had been making him walk around when he had something tearing him up from the inside, and he waited so long before saying anything. Thinking back on it, he didn't want to imagine how bad it could have gotten, and they had been remarkably lucky considering. Then he thought back to the moment he shoved Prompto earlier. This was his fault. That had to have been what caused the object to pierce further.

He pulled everything back down and sat back, letting it all sink in. He was slightly in denial; this couldn't be happening. He didn't think he's ever felt more remorse than this. Not much his 'trying' could do about this now. "I'm so sorry." He apologized, knowing the other couldn't hear him. "I am so so sorry. I made the wrong choice."

Prompto's breath hitched next to him and Noctis turned to see his eyes partially open. He was looking right at him. His right hand reflexively went to his side protectively. "Stop apologizing." He whispered as he let his eyes drift back closed. The dark circles under his eyes contrasted starkly with the complexion of his skin, and to Noctis he appeared almost sickly. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep again, and even though Noctis felt exhausted himself, there was no way he would allow himself that luxury while they were still out here.


	4. Extraction

**Welp, here it is, the last chapter for this little idea. It may not have been my best, but at least I tried I guess. lol But anyway, now that this one is done, I will begin work on the sequel to 'The Real Me' since multiple people, both on here and the other site, wanted it. So I shall provide it. C:**

Sun rays broke through the veil of leaves above at last; Noctis was still where he had been throughout the night, never moving from his spot and never once dozing off. His determination was enough to hold him over for the night. His eyes never leaving the blonde which still slept next to him. Prompto's breathing had stayed relatively steady through the night, with only a few hitches here and there, but nothing that would cause for alarm. Of course, that didn't stop him from perking him up each time.

Even as the sun was rising higher, he decided to just sit there and allow his friend to get all the sleep he could, it was clear he desperately needed it. At the same time he also desperately needed help, but which was more important at the moment? He didn't know. He was just going with his instincts, which weren't the best, but he had no choice but to trust in them. I watched the rise and fall of Prompto's chest with each breath he took, thankful for each passing one.

Noctis shifted slightly, noticing the stabbing tingle that slowly spread through his leg. He hadn't been aware that he had really sat there that long. He straightened both legs out, allowing blood to flow back through both of them without constriction. He averted his gaze to the fire, watching the little wisps of smoke fly up and dissipate above. One wisp after another filtered through the air and past the hanging leaves. That's when it struck him. He had to get the others' attention. He refused to go any further with Prompto the way he was. Nocits got to his feet once his legs had enough feeling in them again and began the wood gathering process once again, stacking each piece up in the fire, allowing it to climb its way higher into the air.

He had to take a step back as the heat emitting off almost doubled with all the newly added fuel. Gazing up, smoke could be seen rising higher than before. It wasn't enough; no one would be able to see that if they were too far away. He gathered up some dead leaves from around them, throwing them in by the handful. They wouldn't burn long, but they would burn well and bright. Each handful caused the flame to flare up for a few seconds before dying down again. He needed something that would last longer. Something that wasn't as dry.

Of course, why didn't he think of it sooner. He called his weapon back, cringing a bit at seeing it again after what he had last done with it. He pushed that memory aside, for now was not the time to dwell on it and swung it upward at a branch above him. Dismissing the blade once again, he grabbed hold of the branch and dragged it over to the fire. He leaned it against the other wood, smiling to himself as it slowly caught, burning much more slowly than the others. Smoke was now steadily streaming as tiny particles flowed forth. Now all he had to do was keep this up and just hope the others would see it eventually. Preferably sooner.

As Noctis was pulling over his second branch, a soft whine pulled his attention. "Welcome to the land of the living." He called over as he dropped his current cargo to the ground and joined Prompto by his side. "You holding up ok?" He asked looking him over. He still didn't look any better, if anything he just looked more tired and worn out.

Prompto lingered on that question, unsure on what he should say. "Alright." He settled on. It was neutral enough, and the tone of his voice was enough to get the point across. Scanning Noctis over he added, "You look terrible." He then scrunched his face up at the sweat and dirt that covered the other.

Noctis lightly laughed, glad to see that he still felt fine enough to poke fun at him, "You're one to talk."

That's when the blonde became aware of the increased temperature, which was only heating one side of his body. He rolled his head to the side to see the dancing flames that seemed oddly larger than he last remembered them being. "What's with that?" He asked, nodding towards it.

"Well, I'm hoping it will be our ticket out of here?"

Prompto looked confused at that idea, "Why...why don't you just call them?" He asked flatly.

Noctis stared straight at him, waiting to see if he was joking or not, he sounded serious but he couldn't be sure. It was after a moment of silence that he realized he was indeed dead serious. "Prom, we were in a river. Pretty sure whatever capabilities our phones had are now gone."

The blonde was lost in thought, trying to remember everything, "Oh." His face fell a bit when it finally came back to him. "Yeah, of course." His hand slowly found its way back to his side where it held on firmly.

It was still bothering him tremendously, "How bad is it?" Noctis asked, detecting the movement under his jacket. "And be honest."

Prompto licked his lips, averting his eyes as he switched his focus to something else. Something that just happened to be the opposite direction of Noctis. "Its-um-well, it could be worse?" He gave his vague and unsure answer, already knowing it wouldn't do.

Noctis sighed, "That's not what I asked." He placed a hand on Prompto's shoulder, eliciting him to face him, "Look me in the eyes, and answer the question." He squeezed lightly, "Please." He included a bit more pleadingly.

Prompto stared right at him now, being held there by the other's gaze. "Uh...if I were telling the truth..." He started, dragging it out. Noctis waved his hand, inviting him to spit it out faster. "It's terrible." He finally admitted, letting his mask fade away as his pain became evident in his face once more. "Every breath is torture." His voice broke at the end as his body shuddered.

Noctis gave a sympathetic look, "I promise it'll be over soon enough." He stood back up and continued with piling limbs onto the fire. One after another until he didn't dare add any more out of fear of burning down everything near. By this time the sun was high in the sky, indicating that hours had now passed. He had been so engulfed in his task that he didn't even realize how much time had gone by.

He leaned back against a tree, and looked up at the smoke consistently rising up as he wiped the sweat from his brow. Prompto stayed as he was, all the while watching Noctis as he worked, wishing he could have done something to help. But, he guessed there wasn't anything he could really do about it other than stay out of the way and avoid causing any more trouble. They had enough of that as it was. He felt oddly cold. That was weird, there was a fire right next to him, if anything he should be warm if not burning. He blinked a few times, trying to chase away the weariness that threatened him.

Noctis was instantly alert when he thought he heard something. It sounded like it was a distance away, but he could have sworn he heard something. Listening harder now, he heard it again, it sounded like voices. "Do you hear that Prom?" He quickly turned to face him, "I told you it would be soo-" He stopped at the appearance of his friend. "Prompto?" He asked tentatively, taking a small step towards him.

His eyes were closed, ad peacefully so. He looked for the rise and fall, indicating sign of life, but saw none. "Hey." He called out, moving faster now, lifting Prompto's head onto his lap. "Come on, wake up." He felt pure emptiness when he got no response, and roughly patted the side of his face. "Don't you dare." He ground out, lowering his head, and placing his ear next to Prompto's lips. He waited for a few seconds. Absolute relief flooded through him as a feint, but certain, breath brushed past him. He was alive.

He held his own breath, just to hear his friend's more easily. Something wet ran down his cheek and he wiped it away with the back of his hand. He hadn't noticed how blurry his vision was until that. He still held onto him, still kept his head down, and kept listening. He wasn't sure how long he sat like that. He was still numb, even as he could feel Prompto being eased away from him, and even as he felt hands on his own shoulders. He didn't think he had the fortitude at this point to fight it, so he just let it happen.

"-tis." He heard someone talking to him, but he still had trouble zoning in on it. "Noctis." They spoke again, and it was louder this time. He blinked away the moisture in his eyes, and looked up to gaze into golden brown ones. "Snap out of it will ya?" He heard as he was roughly jolted.

"Huh?" He asked, snapping his head around, absorbing the scene around him. Gladio was kneeling down in front him, holding him upright and looking at him sternly. "Where?" He asked, still scanning around.

"Calm down." Gladio answered, leaning to the side so Noctis could see around him, "Prompto is with Ignis, he's taking care of it now."

The prince looked behind the large man to see Ignis sitting on the ground with the blonde's head in his lap. He was in the middle placing a potion in his hand. "No!" Noctis cried out, pushing Gladio aside, actually succeeding in doing so, "Ignis, wait!" He rushed over, grabbed Ignis' wrist and jerked it away.

"Noct? What are you doing?" Ignis asked, full of shock at his odd behavior. "There isn't time for this."

Noctis ignored him and pulled up Prompto's shirt, exposing the puncture wound and burns that lined it. "You can't do that yet." Noctis quickly blurted out. "There's something...something is still stuck in his side." Noctis pressed two fingers over the spot where it had been before. "Right here."

Ignis decided to examine it for himself. He felt it for a bit and came to the same conclusion as he saw where Noctis was coming from. "So there is. Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Noctis relayed the events, from the removal of the stick, to the cauterizing of the wound, which Ignis proudly agreed with. "You did good Noct. But you said you extracted it with one quick pull?" Noctis nodded and looked to the ground, knowing that wasn't the best way he should have gone about it, but at the time he wasn't thinking clearly. "A piece could have broken off in that moment." Ignis inspected the area a bit more, "Either way, it has to be removed before we can heal him."

He laid Prompto flat on the ground and handed Noctis the potion, "Hold on to this until I get that out."

"Alright." Noctis replied as Ignis summoned one of his daggers. He was so thankful that Prompto was out for this, he's not sure how much he could take if he had to suffer too much through this. Ignis crouched next to him, lowering the blade until it was barely digging into flesh, causing a drop of blood to spill over. He took a deep breath, and swiftly made a small slice in Prompto's side. Noctis wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not that he didn't react. For now, hoe would consider it a blessing.

Now was for the hard part. The older man slid his thumb and forefinger into the open wound, feeling around until they came into contact with the splinter of wood. Neither he nor the others were prepared for the sudden jolt that ran through the blonde as he gasped out. "Gladio!" Ignis called over. He didn't have to say anymore for him to know what to do and he strongly held Prompto still as he hopelessly tried to pull away.

Slowly and carefully the sliver was extracted and flung aside. "Noctis, the potion." He held out a hand, never turning around. He went back to what he had been trying to do earlier and placed the potion back in Prompto's hand, wrapping his fingers around it and helped him crush it.

A green glow washed over him and Noctis watched on as the wounds closed and healed, though the scars remained. Hopefully Prompto wouldn't mind though. His wounds may have been mended, but he still wouldn't be in acceptable condition until he had time to rest. If only those potions could restore blood loss as well.

Ignis stood up and nodded towards Gladio who in turn lifted the blonde into his arms, holding him close. "He should be fine with some proper sleep." He knew how Noct responded in these situations and could feel the self-loathing emitting off of him. "Noct, if you didn't act as quickly as you did, he might not be here now. For that, we are all grateful, and I know he is too." He glanced back at the still raging fire, "Now we best put this down before it burns half the place to the ground."

"Right." Noctis leaned over to scoop up a large handful of dirt and began sprinkling it over the flames. "And thanks."


End file.
